1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a connector for connecting two conductor rail sections, the connector having at least one electrical conductor and one of its respective ends being connected in a conductive manner to a respective conductor rail section, the connector having a connection element which connects the facing ends of the conductor rail sections to one another.
2. Description of Related Art
Generic conductor rail connectors are also frequently called extensible connectors, these connectors compensating a length change in the conductor rail sections owing to temperature influences and conducting the electrical current from one conductor rail section to the next.
The electrical conductor of generic connectors is designed either flexibly or rigidly, the electrical conductor in the rigid configuration thereof having to be formed in such a way that in the event of length changes of the conductor rail sections, the electrical conductor can be deformed and its length thus changed. If large electrical currents have to be transmitted from one conductor rail section to the next, relatively large cross-sections of the electrical conductor of the connector are required. As the flexibility of an electrical conductor decreases with the cross-section, a plurality of electrical conductors, for example flexible copper strands or copper cables, are frequently used for large current intensities for electrical current transmission. These cables lie outside the conductor rail and therefore need addition space. Owing to the fact that the connectors are fastened on the side of the conductor rail sections remote from the sliding face, the ends of the conductor rail sections cannot be fastened to a carrier or other parts by means of fastening elements, so they can swing freely. As already explained, the electrical conductor is to be designed with a large cross-section so large electrical currents can be transmitted. This produces the problem that relatively high pressure forces occur to change the air gap between the ends of the conductor rail sections owing to temperature variations, so the conductor rail suspensions are subject to large loadings.
Owing to the pressing force of a current collector, the conductor rail section, in particular the freely swinging ends thereof, are moved out of their normal position so the adjoining ends of the conductor rail sections no longer adjoin in an impact-free manner and therefore the current collector can be permanently damaged when the ends of the conductor rail sections are traversed.